At the 2016 National Workers’ Compensation & Disability Conference, Marcos Iglesias from The Hartford and Robert Hall from Helios discussed the impact of disability and tools for improving outcomes for injured workers.  Ways injured workers are impacted by disability include: Loss of income – Not only during the course of the claim, but potential loss […]

At the 2016 Illinois Self Insurers’ Association 38th Annual Educational Seminar and Membership Meeting, Joan Vincenz, Managing Director Workers’ Compensation and Managed Care with United Airlines, talked about the process United went through to restructure their workers’ compensation program when they merged with Continental. The vision statement of United Airlines is to return their employee to […]

As the medical costs of workers’ compensation claims have risen sharply in recent years, the importance of understanding the role surgery plays in a claim has grown. This session at WCI’s 2016 Workers’ Compensation Educational Conference discussed various delays and pitfalls related to surgeries in workers’ compensation. Speakers included: – Cheryl Gulasa, Vice President, AmeriSys […]

Workers’ compensation costs throughout the U.S. have increased by 8-10% over the past few years. This may be attributed to an increase in medical costs and wages, which in turn raises the indemnity payouts. There are two ways to decrease these costs: (1) have fewer injuries and (2) improve management of the injuries when they […]

At the 2016 WCRI Annual Issues & Research Conference, WCRI representatives presented a session comparing workers’ compensation outcomes across states. Panelists included: Dr. Sharon Belton – WCRI Dr. Bogdan Savych – WCRI Dr. Vennela Thumula – WCRI The purpose of this study and other similar studies recently conducted by WCRI was to analyze the outcomes […]

At the 2015 National Workers’ Compensation & Disability Conference, a panel presented a session titled “Physical Function Pre-Work Screens and Fitness-For-Duty Evaluations. The panel included: Darin Hampton, Regional Coordinator, International Paper Gia Schneider, Esq. Shareholder, Haworth, Bradshaw, Stallknecht & Barber Tony Silva, Director, Atlas Injury Prevention Solutions It’s important to remember to match the work […]

As claims drag on, injured workers may start believing that their injuries, disabilities and chronic pain are worse than they actually are. They may perceive the workers’ compensation system is treating them unjustly and withdraw from work and social activities, fueling further catastrophic thinking and fear. This session at the 24th Annual National Workers’ Compensation […]

Opportunities to manage workplace injuries to their optimal conclusions evaporate when claim handlers ignore medical intervention’s power. Important elements may be lost, including the potential to identify risk factors that can delay recovery, the ability to uncover non-work injury causations, and the efficient coordination of claims-service providers. In this session at the 24th Annual National […]

At the 2015 National Council of Self-Insurers Annual Conference, a panel discussed the challenges of managing claims in a diverse workforce. The panels were: Michele Adams – Walt Disney World Resorts Loyd Hudson – American Electric Power Max Koonce – Walmart Disney has a diverse workforce. In fact, employees at Disney World speak three primary […]

This session at the National Workers’ Compensation & Disability Conference in Las Vegas focused on the increasing diversity in today’s workforce and how that is impacting workers’ compensation. Jennifer De La Torre, Executive Director of Workforce Diversity at AT&T, and Elizabeth Demaret, Executive Vice President, Chief Customer Relationship Officer at Sedgwick, explained how the aging, […]